Mr. Speaker, a brand-name pharmaceutical company in the Montreal area, Biochem Pharma, has made an important scientific and medical breakthrough with its AIDS drug, 3TC. With clinical results that have been called spectacular, 3TC well illustrates the research work done by brand-name drug companies.
This result could not have been achieved without the protection provided by the Drug Patent Act, which encourages multimillion-dollar investments in this field in order to increase the potential of biomedical research. Nevertheless, prudence is in order and we must not raise false hopes. Our society has a moral obligation to act cautiously, in a way that respects AIDS patients.